The 2025 edition celebrates 130 years of cinema. The event received a record number of 3,359 films submitted, including 1,493 Brazilian films. The 27th FestCurtasBH will be held from October 31st to November 9th, with competitive and parallel programs and a special curation honoring the Argentine-German filmmaker Narcisa Hirsch.
In 2025, cinema will celebrate its 130th anniversary. The seventh art’s genesis lies in the short film experimentation and constant renewal, which also form the identity of FestCurtasBH, the Belo Horizonte International Short Film Festival, organized by the Clóvis Salgado Foundation (FCS). This year, the event, one of the largest in the country dedicated to short films, reaches its 27th edition, marking over 30 years of existence. The festival takes place at the Palácio das Artes from October 31st to November 9th, featuring 113 films from Brazil and around the world, comment sessions, educational activities, and musical performances, as well as shorts available on the virtual platform CineHumbertoMauroMais.
This year’s edition featured a record 3,359 film submissions — 1,493 of which were Brazilian productions — which were programmed by a team of 13 curators. In addition to the competitive and parallel exhibitions, a highlight is the special curation honoring Argentinian-German director Narcisa Hirsch, conducted in partnership with the Instituto Cervantes.
The program begins on Friday, October 31st, with the opening session at Cine Humberto Mauro, a performance by DJ DJAHI, and the show “Femme Frame” by multi-artist Ava Rocha in the gardens of Palácio das Artes. From then until the 9th, film screenings will take place, spread across more than 30 programs. Throughout the festival, two other days (November 6th and 7th) will conclude with the sounds of various rhythms led by DJs Preta Showme and CONFUSA, and a performance by Vina Jaguatirica. On Saturday, November 8th, at 8 pm, the awards ceremony for the films selected for the competitive sections will take place, and the following day, at the same time, the festival will conclude with the screening of the award-winning short films. The tickets for all activities are free of charge.
The 27th FestCurtasBH features a varied program with recent national and international productions in the competitive sections, as well as a selection dedicated exclusively to Minas Gerais productions. The International Competitive Section features 18 films from 16 countries across five continents; the Brazil Competitive Section includes 16 short films from all regions of the country; and the Minas Gerais Competitive Section features nine works from Juiz de Fora, Betim, Cachoeira do Pajeú, Ouro Preto, Itabira, São João Del Rey, and Belo Horizonte. The films selected in each category will compete for a cash prize of R$5,000 and receive the coveted Capivara Trophy, one of the most highly regarded awards in the Brazilian film festival circuit.
The parallel exhibitions, in turn, focus on themes that resonate intensely in the present, bringing together 15 works in four curatorial sections: “Spell-films” (a theme that permeates the entire festival’s curation), “Tropical Malady”, “Songs from the Earth and Sea”, and “Urban Archaeologies”; in addition to the already traditional Children’s, Youth, Animation, and Midnight sections, which total 38 short films. Educational activities also make up an important part of the activities: in addition to a seminar dedicated to the work of honored filmmaker Narcisa Hirsch, “Corpo Crítico” returns for its 7th edition, proposing new ways of seeing, listening to, and exploring cinema.
The “27th FestCurtasBH” is organized by the Ministry of Culture, the Government of Minas Gerais, the State Secretariat of Culture and Tourism of Minas Gerais, the City of Belo Horizonte, and the Clóvis Salgado Foundation. The Clóvis Salgado Foundation’s activities are supported by Cemig, with Master Sponsorship from the Vale Cultural Institute and the Fredizak Group, Prime Sponsorship from the Unimed-BH Institute and ArcelorMittal, Sponsorship from Vivo, Support from MGS, and co-organized by APPA – Culture & Heritage. The Palácio das Artes is part of the Circuito Liberdade, which brings together 35 venues showcasing a wide variety of art and culture expressions intertwined with tourism. This initiative is made possible by the Federal Law of Cultural Incentives. Vale-Cultura. The Government of Brazil, standing with the Brazilian people.
(Re)enchanting through cinema — During the ten-day event, the audience will have access to a significant selection of current national and international film production, as well as films focused on themes of acute relevance and marked inventiveness, as noted by the festival’s Programming and Curation Coordinator, Ana Siqueira. “Remaining plural and constantly evolving is one of the most striking characteristics of FestCurtasBH, and this is precisely what makes it one of the leading national and international events dedicated to short films. In this 27th edition, we continue to present works with the most diverse artistic proposals, from animations and fictional films to documentaries and experimental works, made by filmmakers of diverse origins, ethnicities, and identities, so that the shorts reflect a reality and an artistic production in constant renewal.” An interesting fact, for example, is that of the 113 films we’ll screen, 75 have at least one woman directing them; meaning that almost 70% of the films are directed partially or entirely by women, which makes us very happy to reflect the strong presence of female directors in short filmmaking. And this also has a lot to do with the theme that permeates the entire curation, which we’re calling ‘spell film,’ with this — primarily feminine — view of the world through magical lenses and this very strong presence of desire, seeking to (re)enchant a world that is so mechanized and overexploited,” she highlights.
Other attractions
In addition to the film screenings, other artistic attractions and educational activities are an essential part of the program. FestCurtasBH Executive Coordinator Bruno Hilário emphasizes that the event is already present in the imagination of filmmakers and viewers throughout Brazil precisely because of this multiplicity of activities that complement and expand the film experience. “Throughout the festival, we will have a series of artistic performances, which seek precisely to relax and enhance these encounters that cinema promotes. The audience will be able to listen to, sing, and dance to Afro-Brazilian and Black/Latin American rhythms, such as funk, pagode, samba, forró, carimbó, and many others, encompassing Brazilian styles and global pop. All of this is linked to the idea of a ‘spell-film,’ because this reunification between the human and the non-human (nature, the earth, the environment that surrounds us) that the theme points to necessarily involves the body, dance, and performance.
Furthermore, FestCurtasBH consistently invests in debates, seminars, and workshops to contribute to audience development and disseminate knowledge about our programming and short films in general. Traditionally, all sessions of the Brazilian and Minas Gerais competitive sections are followed by discussions with directors. The festival attracts approximately 40 guests, fostering a significant platform for dialogue between curators, filmmakers, journalists, and the public, a practice that has grown increasingly stronger over the past three decades,” he emphasizes.
CineHumbertoMauroMais streaming platform
What also hasn’t changed over the years is the desire to share films with an increasingly diverse audience from a wide range of backgrounds. This has also been made possible thanks to the online environment, as explained by Vitor Miranda, Film Manager at the Clóvis Salgado Foundation and General Coordinator of FestCurtasBH. “With the creation of the CineHumbertoMauroMais streaming platform in 2020, the festival’s presence in the virtual space was consolidated in its first edition. Since 2022, we’ve been screening Brazilian films for 24 hours on our virtual platform. Short films remain on the streaming platform at the same time they’re being shown in theaters. This year, the works from the Minas Gerais and Brazilian Competitions will be on the platform, and each film will be streamed at the same time it will be shown in the theatre. Creating this environment dedicated to the festival’s national curation, with unrestricted access for both Brazil and international audiences, helps us reach homes and people we wouldn’t otherwise reach. It’s a two-way street, both reaching a new audience and expanding the presence and appreciation of the works,” he emphasizes.